Gamilaroi woman, Jasmine Ryan has always been an avid learner. 

She not only was the first in her family to go to university but she’s also a keen martial arts enthusiast and occasionally works on the weekends in a surgical skills morgue.

But in addition to these unique talents, she’s most passionate about supporting her community.

Her new role as the Business & Employment Manager gives her the opportunity to do just that.

“It’s been over a month since I started with Yarpa, and I’m so excited to be here. I’m seeing so many great outcomes for our mob.”

“One of the things that really attracted me to this role was the opportunity to work directly with those Indigenous people setting up their businesses, working within the industry for themselves and creating a lot of opportunities for mob. It’s great to see the passion that we have in our communities.”

So far, she’s been out on the road to Griffith and Queanbeyan with our Yarpa business coach to meet with Indigenous businesses.

“My experience is with construction and engineering but within my role at Yarpa, I’m coming across so many other kinds of businesses as well. You’ve got cultural tourism, you’ve got artists, you’ve got so many more people using their natural talents and their passion and channelling it into economic opportunities for themselves. By doing that, they’re also creating, not just role models and leaders for the community but better opportunities for their families and mob.”

Her hope for the Indigenous business sector is that it not only grows significantly but thrives.

“There are so many opportunities for Indigenous businesses within Australia to capitalise on. I think one of the biggest challenges is putting our best foot forward and challenging the perception of what it means to be an Indigenous business and what it means to engage an Indigenous business. I think Yarpa is a megaphone. It’s a place where we can make sure that people will listen. That businesses are being promoted and highlighted. It can be a facilitator to build strong relationships between Industry and our businesses. I can’t wait to see what we can do.”

“When you’re talking with Indigenous business owners you ask them why they want to own their own business. What do they see for their business for the next 2-3 years? More often than not, their response is I want to grow my business so that I can employ other Indigenous people in my community., And that constantly reaching back to bring mob forward is something that I love about Indigenous business owners that we get to work with. We see how passionate they are not only with their own success, but their communities as a whole.”

With so much dedication to the work she does, she credits her family for instilling a great work ethic.

“My mum has made incredible sacrifices so that her kids can achieve great things. She made sure that her kids had a good life. I’m so grateful for all the opportunities because of the hard work my mum and dad have put in. Their work ethic has been something that I have tried to follow.”

“My nan is also a huge supporter and I wouldn’t be where I am without her. There’s not a week that goes by that I don’t call her. She goes out of her way to show love to every one so I try to do the same.”